A/N: I've decided to stop waiting to post stuff until I have more chapters completed. So I'm not sure when I'll update this, but here it is.

Rated for mature content and language.

Inspired by Brad Paisley's song 'Whiskey Lullaby'.

Whiskey Lullaby

It was fucking killing him.

Amber eyes glared at the gold liquid swishing around in his glass. He didn't pay attention to the soft murmur of the crowds around him, or the cautious glances the bartender threw his way. None of it mattered anymore. He only cared for the whiskey as he downed another shot.

It caused the ache in his chest to become a dull throb, and the memories of a dark-haired woman became a blurred haze. His mind was left in a fog and sometimes the alcohol slurred his speech. He didn't really mind any of it though. He had nothing to say that was worth hearing, and nothing to think about that was worth remembering. He was simply there, an empty shell moving through the world with a shattered heart.

"All right, I think you've had enough," the bartender finally said, coming to stand by the broken man.

Inuyasha peered up at him with bloodshot eyes. His silver hair hung knotted around his shoulders, and his clothes were wrinkled and stained. It was obvious to anyone that he had a rough few nights.

With a sigh, the bartender grasped the shot glass out of his patron's hand. Inuyasha growled low in his throat, his eyes shooting daggers at the man. "Don' fuckin' touch it," he demanded darkly in such a tone; it had the bartender pausing in his actions. "Poor me another."

The bartender looked on with pity, throwing a rag over his shoulder. He placed his palms against the black granite of the bar and leaned forward. "I don't know what happened to you, but you've gotta get a hold of yourself. Drinkin' yourself to death ain't the answer."

"Keh," Inuyasha grumbled, lowering his eyes to his empty shot glass. "Says you. You got no fuckin' idea."

He opened his mouth, probably to try and talk some sense into him, but caught a glimpse of someone making their way through the crowd. "No more for you tonight. Your ride's here."

Before Inuyasha could protest, his glass was snatched away and the bartender moved on to another customer. With a groan, the broken man rested his forehead against the cool countertop and willed the darkness to consume him.

"Inuyasha," a feminine voice called tentatively. A gentle hand was placed on his shoulder, and he didn't need to look up to know who it was. He could clearly picture Kagome's worried expression as she looked at him with pitied eyes. "Come on, it's time to go home."

Reluctantly, he stood up from the barstool, cursing all creation for the dizziness that encompassed him. Kagome immediately fitted her arm securely behind him to give him some stability.

"Fuckin' wench," Inuyasha slurred, trying to choose which of the three Kagome's in his vision was the correct one. "I don' need yer help."

She smiled softly in spite of the situation. "Everyone needs help sometimes, Inuyasha."

The two pushed their way through the crowded bar and out into the crisp evening air. They stopped a few times on the way to Kagome's car in order to allow Inuyasha to regain his balance. Once she secured him in the passenger seat of her small, blue bug, she fastened herself in the driver seat and revved the engine to life.

Inuyasha blearily stared out the passenger window as he listened to the silence. The only sound came from the beat of his heart. It taunted him, reminding him that he was still alive, and that the agony he knew would always thud painfully in his chest.

"It n'ver works," he mumbled, just loud enough for Kagome to hear.

She stole a glance at him. "What doesn't work, Inuyasha?"

He closed his eyes for a brief moment. "No matt'r how much I drin', it still hurts."

"Drinking isn't the answer," she tried to explain solemnly. It was something he heard her say many times over the last few months, trying to convince him that going through life in a haze wasn't right.

"It mak's it 'eel bett'r though," he reasoned.

"Inuyasha," Kagome murmured, tightening her hands around the steering wheel. "Time heals all wounds."

"Th'n why th' hell does it still hurt so fucking much?" he bellowed, turning to glare at her with smoldering eyes, glazed over with unshed tears. "Why th' fuck did she hav' to do tha' to me, K'gome? Why?"

The young woman bit her lip to hold back her cries. "I don't know," she finally choked out in a heartbroken tone. "But I'm so sorry."

She placed one of her hands over his, squeezing it reassuringly. It didn't help matters any. Inuyasha didn't want her pity. He simply pulled away and turned his eyes back to the passing scenery.

The rest of the car ride was silent save for the pair's breathing. A million thoughts raced through Inuyasha's mind, but with his drunken state, he couldn't comprehend where one ended and another began. It was easier that way, though. It was always easier to make it through the dull days with a bottle of whiskey in his blood. It was his only way to cope.

Kagome pulled up to Inuyasha's apartment building and put the car in park. She walked around to the passenger door and helped him out of the car. He had calmed down since their short, but heartbreaking conversation. He didn't really feel anything anymore. There was only a twinge of pain behind his drunken vision, and it was enough to make him crave another bottle.

Inuyasha sluggishly allowed Kagome to lead him as she draped his arm over her shoulder. He towered over her and weighed much more, leaving her in no position to be carrying a grown man up five flights of stairs. But Inuyasha was too far gone to realize any of this. All his mind could focus on was the numbness that was slowly taking effect and the welcoming darkness that was soon to come.

"Home sweet home," she mumbled as they reached his apartment and she used her key to open the front door. Her voice sounded as if it was coming through a tunnel. "Let's get you in to bed."

Inuyasha vaguely recalled her slipping him beneath the covers and removing his shoes. He blearily saw her disappear through his bedroom door and reappear with a glass of water and some aspirin. He barely felt her touch as she pushed his bangs away from his face and faintly heard her whisper words of comfort in his ears.

"It's going to be okay, Inuyasha," she promised, kissing him on the forehead. "I'm here. Always."

However, to the drunken man, her words didn't mean anything. Nothing was ever going to be okay again. The life he had worked so hard to achieve was over. How could he even begin to fathom his future when it had become so bleak?

Sometime in the night, he woke up to the soft pounding of rain against his window. His tongue felt heavy in his mouth as he tried to swallow. His wearied eyes glanced around the room. Kagome was gone. She must have left shortly after he fell asleep. He didn't blame her. He couldn't count how many times she had stayed the night, worriedly watching over him until the sun rose. Over time, it must have become too much for her.

Inuyasha sighed. With a few hours of sleep behind him, the numbness began to withdraw, and he fervently clawed at it. Survival was minimal without the darkness. His thoughts began to return and memories started to resurface. He clutched at his head, hoping by sheer will he could forget everything related to the heartache.

A groan echoed through the night as he unsteadily rose from bed. He stumbled down the hallway of his apartment, pushing off the walls for support. Booze would be the only cure to the pain he felt with each beat of his heart. He slowly made his way toward the kitchen and opened the cabinet over the stove to pull out a bottle of whiskey. The bronze liquid promised him all his desires.

He slumped down into the kitchen chair and stared at the picture hanging on the wall across from him. There was a large tree blooming with fresh flowers and the sun shined down upon a green meadow. Beneath the tree was a man, twirling a dark-haired woman in his arms. They were smiling.

Inuyasha opened the bottle and gulped down a large sip, allowing memories to fill his mind. For every shot of whiskey, he recounted the events leading up to his heartbreak.

Her figure adorned with lingerie.

He slammed the bottle down on the table as his mind began to get hazy.

The tears rolling down her cheeks.

Everything began to bleed together.

His name a whisper on her lips.

He could vaguely feel the tears running down his face.

Her hand reaching out for him.

His heart beat a tune of sorrow, playing over and over again. Every time he closed his eyes, an image of her would appear. She was always smiling.

Before Inuyasha realized, the bottle was gone, and the room began to spin. He stumbled to the cabinet again, reaching out for yet another drink, but it was just out of reach. Somewhere along the way, he lost his balance, and the floor rushed up to meet him.

There was no pain as his head connected with the hard tile. His eyes glazed over with tears as the blood began to pool around him. He looked forlornly at the picture hanging on the wall, tracing his eyes over the happy couple who appeared to be from a different lifetime.

A breath shuddered from his lips. He blinked as his vision began to blur. "… I …" He took a deep breath as his lungs began to capsize. "… love …" No longer could he feel his legs and his fingertips tingled until they were numb. "…you …"

By sheer will he wrapped his hand around the empty bottle he had just consumed. Darkness took his vision as a single image stayed frozen behind his eyelids, becoming his final memory.

"… Kikyo …"

She was smiling.